Aviva PLC Lowers Stock Position in Ferguson plc $FERG

Aviva PLC decreased its holdings in Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) by 36.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 188,789 shares of the company’s stock after selling 106,165 shares during the quarter. Aviva PLC owned about 0.10% of Ferguson worth $41,109,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 4.4% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,168,743 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,071,408,000 after buying an additional 806,718 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in Ferguson by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 7,687,611 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,673,977,000 after acquiring an additional 27,312 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Ferguson by 13.8% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,818,800 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,092,576,000 after acquiring an additional 827,355 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in Ferguson by 65.0% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 4,454,467 shares of the company’s stock worth $713,740,000 after acquiring an additional 1,755,464 shares during the period. Finally, T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Ferguson by 101.1% during the 1st quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,165,873 shares of the company’s stock worth $667,498,000 after acquiring an additional 2,094,029 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on FERG. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Ferguson from $260.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Ferguson from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Ferguson from $231.00 to $243.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Zacks Research raised Ferguson to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on Ferguson from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ferguson currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $240.80.

Ferguson Price Performance

FERG opened at $249.91 on Monday. Ferguson plc has a 1-year low of $146.00 and a 1-year high of $252.52. The firm has a market cap of $48.98 billion, a PE ratio of 26.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.18. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $235.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, September 16th. The company reported $3.48 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.48. The company had revenue of $8.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.44 billion. Ferguson had a return on equity of 35.21% and a net margin of 6.03%.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 7th. Investors of record on Friday, September 26th were paid a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 26th. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.55%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Ian T. Graham sold 4,864 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.22, for a total transaction of $1,134,382.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 7,769 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,811,886.18. This trade represents a 38.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider James A. Paisley sold 3,000 shares of Ferguson stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.97, for a total value of $710,910.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 2,211 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $523,940.67. This represents a 57.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 29,264 shares of company stock worth $6,853,349 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Ferguson Profile

Ferguson Enterprises Inc distributes plumbing and heating products in North America. The company provides expertise, solutions, and products, including infrastructure, plumbing, appliances, fire, and fabrication, as well as heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) to residential and non-residential customers.